Diego
and Frida
1929 - 1944

1944

Frida painted this
double portrait as a gift for her husband Diego on their 15th wedding
anniversary. She later repainted another version of it to keep for herself.
The dates in the title, 1929-1944, represent their years of marriage (excluding
the brief period they were divorced in 1939-1940). The painting expresses
Frida's love for Rivera, showing them not as a couple, but as only one
person. Both halves of faces complement each other. She merges her identity
with his, creating a single head out of half of each of their faces bound
together by leafless branches. In the dualistic relationship between husband
and wife, reiterated in the sun and moon, the Kahlo-Rivera couple is shown
to belong together. Below, the joined scallop and conch symbolize their
love union.